CHAPTER III 



ALMOST ISLAND 



SIX years ago I drifted in the Arcturus for ten 

 days in the Pacific, hovering above a certain spot 

 in mid-ocean and by dredge, net and sounding wire 

 learning everything I could about this invisible but 

 very real bit of submerged earth. 



Six days ago I made my first map of Almost 

 Island, south of Nonsuch, and northeast of Gur- 

 nets Rock. We are accustomed to speak of air 

 pockets and mountain chains and hanging val- 

 leys, so why cannot we have something which is 

 almost an island? The distinction is much more ac- 

 curate than that between hill and mountain, creek 

 and river. I might in fact call my area Once Island 

 for from its configuration and our knowledge of the 

 land hereabouts, there is no doubt that it was for- 

 merly well above water. 



I discovered it by accident three years ago when 

 I rowed out to Gurnets, threw out the anchor at 

 random and went down in the helmet. I found my- 

 self in ^ve or six fathoms on the whitest of sand, 

 looking up at the walls of a splendid reef — great 

 cHffs waving with sea-fans and alive with fish. The 

 minute the helmet was removed I located the 

 spot definitely in its relation to Gurnets Rock 



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